140 BEYOND THE PASTURE BARS 



were safe inside the hat; and in a prideful, self- 

 conscious mother way she began to wash the five. 

 She had seen her kittens put into the hat, but now 

 some one stood between her and the hat when 

 the kittens were lifted out and the squirrels were 

 put in their place. Calico did not see what was 

 done. For a time she thought no more about the 

 two missing babies; she was busy washing and 

 showing the others. By and by it began to look as 

 though she had forgotten that there were more 

 than five. She could not count. But most moth- 

 ers can number their children, even if they can- 

 not count, and soon Calico began to fidget, look- 

 ing up at the hat, which the hungry, motherless 

 squirrels kept rocking. Then she leaped out upon 

 the floor, purring, and bounded upon the table, 

 going straight to the young squirrels. 



There certainly was an expression of surprise 

 and mystification on her face as she saw the 

 change that had come over those kittens. They 

 had shrunk in size and faded from two or three 

 bright colors to a single pale pink! She looked 

 again and sniffed them. Their odor had changed, 

 too! She turned to the watchers about the table 

 as if asking them to explain it all, but they said 

 nothing. She hardly knew what to think. She 



